Tragus Piercing Care

Piercing is becoming more and more popular,
especially in the last decade. Both, men and women love to pierce
their noses, navels, eyebrows etc etc. Many areas of the body are
used for piercing. Most people who have piercings do not develop any
problems. Each body piercing site has its own normal healing
time and its own set of potential problems. Home treatment can help
speed healing of the wound and prevent problems. At first, a body
piercing site may be slightly swollen. A small amount of blood or
fluid may drain from the site.

Tragus is the small cartilage nub which projects
out from near the way leading to the ear canal. It has been a trend
visible among the youth of the present generation to sport shiny and
funky rings on this small little part of the ear to enhance their
style statement. Usually people who are bold and adventurous opt for
this kind of piercing, the methodology of which is slightly
different from other kinds of cartilage piercing. The tragus
piercing is usually carried out using a hollow, straight or curved
small-gauge needle which should be sterilized. It requires a trained
piercer as piercing tragus is also risky as there is a possibility
of the needle penetrating beyond the tragus. The tragus piercing
risks are also quite in number and so we need to take extra
precautions while getting the tragus pierced.

The tragus is quite susceptible to infections as it is located in
such an area over which hairs keep falling and may get caught around
the earring and infections may be caused out of this contact with
dirty hairs. This leads to tragus piercing infections and problems
which can aggravate to tragus piercing complications which may
result the need for surgical operations in extreme cases may even
cause the tragus to be surgically removed. In order to avoid such
risks one must ensure to go for tragus piercing tools and jewellery
of a considerable high quality.

Does Tragus Piercing hurt?
Unlike the piercing of any other part of the body such as the belly
or the nose, the tragus lacks a bundle of nerves and comparatively
less blood flows through it. So there are no such chances of
experiencing immense pain while tragus piercing. There may be a
slight pinch similar to what one normally experiences as in case of
a cut but the pain is highly negligible. Initially the area pierced
may bleed and develop into a sore but the pain withers away within a
very few days. It is necessary to keep the area clean and tidy so as
to prevent it from any kind of infection.

Tragus piercing Jewellery
The kind of jewellery that one can wear after a tragus piercing
depends on the pace at which the pierced area gets healed. One
should also be cautious as not to wear funky artificial accessories
or earrings made of poor quality as it may have a harmful effect on
the tragus. It is advisable to wear tragus piercing rings, studs,
barbells or earrings made of sophisticated metals such as those made
of gold, silver, platinum, or titanium which are of non-corrosive
nature and shall not cause harm to the ear. The jewellery must be of
a good quality and should not be very tight but of a comfortable
nature. It must also suit your personality well.

Aftercare
The most essential factor for the fast healing of the tragus pierced
is to follow the tragus piercing aftercare measures efficiently. For
atleast 4-8 weeks you should take good care of the tragus for the
smooth healing of your tragus . But the healing duration also
depends on the skin type which may either be oily or dry, the
immunary capabilities of the body system, as well metabolic
disorders such as diabetes wherein any wound or infection takes a
longer time to heal.

The tragus piercing area must be kept clean and tidy by soaking a
clean cotton ball in a disinfectant or a saline solution and gently
applying it in and around the pierced area. The solution should be
applied in such a way as to alow it to seep into the pierced hole.
The tragus piercing jewellery must be twisted gently as and when
required in order to ensure the even distribution of the solution
all around the tragus. This cleaning procedure must be followed
twice or thrice a day.

You should not touch the pierced area with dirty or uncleaned hands
as it may cause bacterial infections and lead to tragus piercing
complications. If there is any kind of irritation in the pierced
area owing to the tightness of the jewellery or the discharge of any
kind of fluid from the affected area, you should carefully loosen or
change the jewellery or wipe the fluid by a hand washed properly by
an anti-bacterial soap.

While sleeping you should be careful to lie on a clean bed on the
either side of the ear affected. The pillow on which you rest your
head should be cleaned and changed on a regular basis so as to avoid
the area to get infected. Vigilance is also required while sleeping
to restrain oneself from touching or itching the ear affected.

Similarly you should refrain from scraping any kind of crusty
formation over the tragus. Any such irritable cause must be
carefully dealt with following the guidelines that have been laid
down by the experts and the doctors.

No such clothes should be worn which may touch the area pierced.
Pull-overs and T-Shirts with collars must be avoided during the
healing process as it may hurt the pierced area and aggravate the
vulnerability of the same.

Putting up earphones on the tragus pierced is prohibited. You should
be extra vigilant using the cellphone as under no circumstances the
cell should be brought close to the affected ear.

Salt Water Soaks
Salt water soaks are necessary after a body piercing session.
Cleaning a recently perforated area helps keep it safe from dirt and
germs and prevents bacterial infection. Add a tsp of sea salt into a
glass containing 8 ounces of water. Mix this thoroughly. Soak a
small cotton ball or Q-tip with a little of the solution and apply
it to the pierced area. Throw the pad away and repeat the process
with a new one. Continue this for 5-6 minutes. The session should be
carried out twice daily till a month or two after the piercing
session.

Infections
If you fail to abide by the instructions carefully you might end up
infecting the tragus, thereby delaying the healing process and
leading to tragus piercing complications. Any injury to the pierced
area may make it vulnerable to infections. So you must take extra
care of the ear and have to avoid swimming for as long as it does
not get completely healed as the water is chlorinated in swimming
pools. Moreover the infection may cause the occurrence of a keloid
or a boil or may also lead to a swollen tragus. This can be treated
by the application of tea tree oil with warm diluted water over the
affected surface in a calm and gentle manner. One may carefully
change the jewellery if required but changing tragus piercing
jewellery frequently is staunchly prohibited. However it is
advisable to consult a dermatologist.